Learning how to pose

On the first day of the photography conference, one on wedding photography and one on general photography. Both classes talked a lot about posing so I decided to try it out in my shots!

Do I look thinner to you?

One tip was to do something with your hands. No dead arms!

Also, keep them away from your sides to make you look thinner.

Don't stand straight on to the camera.

Aim the hips back a little then lean forward.

And keep your chin up to accentuate the neck.

Above all, make the girl look pretty!

Traveling in Style (sort of)

Ladies of the past may have traveled in style but when I'm going to be traveling by car I prefer to be comfy! So my Freddies were an easy choice.

These are my new black pleated pants! Pardon the wrinkles, they did road trip with me.

I also wore a green cardigan, orange top and my chic old lady gardening shoes.

This fountain was in our hotel and it was gorgeous! :D

Can I just say how much I love these pants! Freddies of Pinewood jeans are pricey especially to have them shipped over seas but I just adore them. So happy to finally have another pair that fits!

Yay pants!

Fabulous Fifties Bangs

Bettie bangs are not the only way to get cute 50s bangs. This tutorial is great for ladies with modern bangs or who are growing out those Bettie bangs. Enjoy!

Prepping for a Vintage Trip

Packing for a trip is always a lot of work and just like most things, it takes a bit more effort for us vintage gals especially when you are just starting out. Planning is key!

Step 1: Pack

This is me packing for a weekend trip to a photography conference! I love laying out my outfits if I've got enough space. If not, I write out my outfits on paper though I might take them out one at a time for a closer look. If you have an itinerary or general idea of the activities/social events you'll be going to, that helps a lot!

If I was going on a cruise, I'd need different outfits than if I was road tripping to State Parks. If you don't have specific list of activities, try to come up with a list of likely events- casual day events, parties, dinners out, outdoor activities, etc. Consider which which activities are vintage friendly, which are me-made friendly and which might be more appropriate for repro or modern pieces.On my trip, I'd have one day of travel, two days of classes and one evening social event.

Once you have your activities, decide how many outfits you'll need. Will you want to change outfits during the day or perhaps bring a day-to-evening outfit with different accessories? Can you wear something more than once on a trip? For long trips, I prefer mix and match separates but for short trips, I'd rather bring really different outfits and bring one set of accessories that can go with more than one outfit since accessories are less likely to make an impact than an outfit.

Here's my outfits again. The left two dresses are my day dresses and the right dress is my evening dress. The outer two dresses are jersey which is great for travel since they won't wrinkle!

Next, start thinking about accessories for your outfits-shoes, tights/hoes, belts, jewelry, hat, hair accessories. And don't forget undergarments! Does one of your dresses need a special bra? Will you bring a sip or crinoline? Might you be inside where the ac could be on? Pack a cardigan or too!

For my trip I picked a black belt that could be worn with any of my dresses, just two pair of shoes and one pair of black tights. I also decided to bring just my small crinoline so it wouldn't take up valuable suitcase real estate. I also chose a classic faux pearl necklace and earrings that would go with any of my outfits.

Then go pack! I got all of my clothes into my small vintage suitcase and the gold bag held all of my modern stuff-toiletries, curling iron, laptop, stuff to do in the car, etc.

Step 2: Prep your hotel room

I know that once you hit the hotel room, you'll either be super tired and want to crash or so excited and ready to start on your vacation but prepping your hotel room will be essential to making your vintage look easy to maintain on your trip!

Most hotel rooms have a closet so hang up your clothes right away to prevent unnecessary wrinkles. If you need to and have time, iron anything that needs it right way so that it's all ready to go! If there's not an iron in your room or you are running short on time, try hanging the wrinkled garment in the bathroom while you shower and the steam will help remove the wrinkles!

I also organized my shoes and stowed my suitcases in the closet so they'd be out of the way!

Don't forget to prep the bathroom with all of your beauty and hair products so you're ready to go the next morning! Plus this is a great way to discover if you've forgotten something important-like your hair brush! *facepalm*

Also, be on the look out for great photo locations! If nothing else, the bathroom mirror tents to be handy!

Step 3: Enjoy your vacation!

Now you're all set to enjoy your trip! Your plan will help with outfit decisions but feel free to switch it up if something isn't working! All that prep will help loads on busy mornings when you are tired and need to get going early.

Do you have any trip packing tips?

Adventures in Hair Dye Removal Part 2

Ok, so here is part 2-the reveal plus the dye! Enjoy!


And I finally figured out how to add little links to my video! *pats self on back* :)

Adventures in Hair Dye Removal Part 1

I've been trying to remove the black hair dye from my hair and I filmed through the process. I ended up filming more than I thought I did so it's in two parts, the second will be up tomorrow!



It is a lot of talking but I think the camera actually did an ok job of actually capturing the changes in my hair color.

Retro Gals and Hair

I'm having hair indecision again so we're going to talk about hair. I've been experimenting with home hair color (and color removing) but since I have dark hair, it's hard to do much with out professional help! I'll be sharing my hair adventures on Wednesday assuming youtube cooperates but today I wanted to talk about the vintage/retro scene and hair colors.

It seems to me that a lot of vintage and retro gals are attracted to bold and contrasting hair colors. I know that ladies of the past also enjoyed these colors.

Dark hair and bold brows set of lighter eyes.

And there's Marilyn's famous locks that we all know had some help getting this shade.

But what is it about these bold contrasting shades that draws us so? Especially considering that most of us don't have stylists on retainer to follow us around and touch up our color!

Ashley of Lisa Freemont Street has been rocking RED locks for a long time (and platinum blonde before that). As much as I love red hair, I know how much maintenance it is even if you are lucky like Ashley and have light enough hair that you don't have to bleach it first!

Brittany of Va-Voom Vintage has rocked both darker and lighter hair. Maybe because we tend to do more with our hair than stick it up in a pony tail, it makes us desire a stronger color to show off our hair dos.

 Plus there's Candice of Super Kawaii Mama and her iconic blonde streak which does look awesome in rolls and such. Maybe we like standing out in our outfits and want our hair to do the same.

Then there is the crayon box colors that are becoming more and more popular. Gertie of Gertie's Blog for Better Sewing has rocked pink tips and a whole head of pink! There seems to be such a sense of fun and excitement with these bold colors.

Not to mention that pink hair looks awesome on camera as modeled by A Vintage Vanity. One reason that I really want to get away from black hair is that it does not show up well on camera.

So what is our obsession with crazy hair colors? Did we pick it up from stars of the past? Did we bring it from other subcultures in our past? Is it just that it's so easy now to do? Are we getting bored too fast? Is it just a reflection of the greater acceptance of less natural hair color by society?

 Or maybe most of us are more like Casey of Elegant Musings-quite content with the hair color that naturally springs from our head and it's just the flashy, bold looks that get more screen time because they are "more exciting".

So let's discuss while I ponder what color I want my hair!

Mxing Up Some Old Favorites

New clothes are so fun but sometimes it's nice to slip on an old favorite that you know will look great.

This circle skirt is one of the first few things I ever sewed and I still love it!

It's lost some of it's luster but it's still got plenty of life left in it.

My bangs are getting to be an odd length so I clipped them back with a bow.

The problem with cutting your own bangs is that sometimes you have an oops. I cut my bang area too deep a while back so I really must grow them all out before I even think about cutting them again.

Anyways, whenever my husband and I shoot a wedding, I always pretend to be the bride (and party) so he can test out lighting etc.

It's pretty fun sometimes.

What is your old favorite outfit that you pull out over and over?

Youtube: Buxom Lip and Lash Duo Review

Today's youtube is a review of the last of my Black Friday Sephora haul products. Enjoy!

HSF #3: Under it all

It's the end of another Historical Sew Fortnightly challenge. The theme of this challenge was under it all and I made up a 19teens corset from a pattern by Festive Attyre.

Corset! And birds! I'm wearing it over gym shorts and a tank top (plus my teens bra) because I haven't made up a chemise yet....

The Challenge: Under it all
Fabric: coutil
Pattern: 19teens corset drafted from an extant corset by Festive Attyre
Year: 1916 (ish)
Notions: steel bones, grommets (00), lacing, busk, hook and eye, lace, garters
How historically accurate is it? I used a pattern based on an extant corset, but I did use modern boning and elastic garters. I am quite happy with the historical accuracy and the shape it gives me.
Hours to complete: The mock ups took a while but the actual corset went together pretty quickly.
First worn: not yet
Total cost: ~$70

After doing research, talking with other costumers and playing around with my undergarments, I've decided to do chemise then bra and corset then combinations then petticoat (if needed).

My combinations came out really long compared to the garters on my corset plus it didn't make sense to me to have these huge voluminous legs and then squish them up under garters.

So it's combinations on the outside.

And now that I have my corset done, it's on to the real clothes! :D

Spring Fever

On Thursday, I got double surprises as my hubby surprised me with ballet tickets and my Christmas American Duchess 23skidoo shoes (also from the hubby) arrived! :D

Shoes!

Even though these shoes are 20s/30s styles, I paired them with a 50s circle skirt and hat. The weather ended up being unseasonably warm and that springy feeling came out in my wardrobe choices.

 

After posting about brooches this week, I felt inspired to wear one of mine! It was my great-grandmother's but since I received it after she passed I'm not sure how old it is.

These shoes were sooo fun to wear. The entire time, I felt like bursting into a crazy dance number.

I had plans to make a 30s dress especially to go with these shoes but I've been so busy with school that it hasn't happened yet! It's going to be more of a summer weight dress anyways, so it's ok.